The other night a woman rang my doorbell. When I answered, she asked in her best non-threatening voice, “Hi, are you Brian?” Of course, I said, “Yes.”However, I was not fooled, this lady was not a friend. I knew exactly what this was, this was my old life catching up with me. As soon as ...
In the month before I left prison, another prisoner said to me, “I can tell you and your cellie are both short-timers, because you guys are way too happy for this place.” The interesting part about that was my cellie Paul was not a short-timer or even close. Paul is serving a life sentence ...
What do prisoners dream about doing when they are released? Last week, I wrote about my vacation and scratching some things off my freedom list. These things are often a topic of discussion in prison. You’d expect prisoners to romanticize about food and women, and they do, but neither come ...
Most prisoners dream about specific things they want to do when they get out. I was no different. I expressed these in an article I wrote before I left prison.First, I wanted to completely submerge myself in a large body of water, and secondly, I wanted to be outside, all by myself, without any ...
There was a terrific program in prison called LIFE (Living Institution Free Everyday). It was far and away better than any other programming I had participated in while incarcerated.I explained <a ...
Today is Memorial Day. It’s a day originally set aside for those men and women who laid down their lives for our country; however, it’s become a day to remember any loved ones lost.In the last month alone, three people that I knew personally, lost their lives from drugs. According to a ...
When you are first sent to live in the Utah State Prison, you are locked in a cell for all but one hour on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And even on your hours out, the only thing to do is go take a shower and walk around in an empty “dayroom.” This period is called R&amp;O, which ...
In prison, inmates are repeatedly asked by their peers what they were sent to prison for. I heard numerous accounts that just didn’t add up. When I got out and gained access to the internet, I looked up a couple dozen such cases just to confirm my gut instincts. Low and behold, only one ...
My state issued counselor recently told me he isn’t worried about me going back to prison, using drugs again, or having difficulty acclimating to the free world. As a result of this assessment I am no longer required to participate in any counseling or substance abuse classes. I’m done with ...
<span class="m_3421502324869305018m_-380235897789341531gmail-s1">So I was just leaving the Jazz game the other night and thought about the time. It was just after 9 p.m. and it was dark outside. A year before, I was locked in my cell and waiting for an officer to count me and make ...